1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a phosphor (fluorescent material) which is excited efficiently by ultraviolet light or short-wavelength visible light to emit light, and to a light-emitting device produced therewith.
2. Description of the Related Art
A variety of light-emitting devices are known, which are configured to produce light of the desired color by using a combination of a light-emitting element and phosphors which are excited by the light emitted from the light-emitting element and producing light in a wavelength region different from that of the light-emitting element.
In recent years, particular attention has been paid to white light-emitting devices with long life and low power consumption, which are configured to produce white light by using a combination of a semiconductor light-emitting element such as a light-emitting diode (LED) or a laser diode (LD) which emits ultraviolet light or short-wavelength visible light and phosphors which use the light-emitting element as an excitation light source.
Known examples of such white light-emitting devices include systems using a combination of an LED which emits ultraviolet light or short-wavelength visible light and different phosphors which are excited by ultraviolet light or short-wavelength visible light to emit light beams of colors such as blue and yellow, respectively (see Patent Document 1).
[Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application (Laid-Open) No. 2009-38348